First, there was a gently buzzing noise, then a tune. Eiji looked at his phone in confusion. It was school hours. No one should have been calling him. "Hello?" Eiji answered.
"Eiji! How's your 'punishment' going?" Fuji's voice came.
"Uncle is home, so I've been doing homework and chores from sunrise to sunset. I have to be in bed by eight."
Fuji chuckled. "Yumiko has me doing chores and studying too. I had to fix the wall in the guest room, you know the one we ripped by accident? I had to fix the frame because I broke it as I took it down."
Eiji smiled. "Have you done the math homework sensei sent us? I don't get it. I think he sent the wrong page."
"Really? I've been banned of computer privileges. I got caught editing my photos," Fuji's voice chuckled.
Eiji brought his knees to his chest. "I haven't seen your pictures in a while, nya. When I get back, I'll have to come see them."
Fuji agreed. "Yes. You can stay over, too."
"Are you sure you're not grounded?"
"I'm sure."
"Eiji-kun, come inside please," a gentle voice asked from the door. Eiji nodded as he got up.
"I have to go. I'll see you soon," Eiji smiled a little.
"Bye Eiji. Take care. I look forward to it."
Eiji closed his phone and sighed. He brushed off his pants as he walked inside. There, his sister and brother waited for him. "Eiji," Takumi breathed. "Dr Kobayashi wants to see you."
Eiji sighed. Dr Kobayashi again? He had already seen him every day for the last week. He really had been with his aunt and uncle in Kumamoto, but Dr Kobayashi had seen him in a town midway between Kumamoto and Tokyo.
"Hello, Eiji-kun," Dr Kobayashi's voice greeted. Eiji blinked. Dr Kobayashi wasn't meant to be in Kumamoto.
"Hi…" Eiji greeted. "Aren't you meant to be in Tokyo?"
Dr Kobayashi chuckled. "I thought I'd visit today. Besides, the train trip was just the right amount of time to start reading a medical journal that's been sitting on my shelf."
"What's it about?" Eiji asked, faking interesting. He'd delay the news he was dreading for as long as he could.
"Ironically, the effects of lung disease on the brain and other organs such as the heart," Dr Kobayashi smiled.
Eiji's hopefully distractive comment didn't quite work as it seemed. "Oh. It sounds interesting, nya," he replied.
Dr Kobayashi's expression turned serious. "Well, it gave me insight as to possibly why your memory lapses."
Takumi put her hand on Eiji's shoulder. "Really?" She looked hopeful.
Dr Kobayashi frowned. "No, I'm lying. I just wanted to see the look on your face – of course, really! Why would I lie about such an important matter?" he asked. "You say you've gotten moodier since that old medication, Eiji-kun."
Eiji nodded. "That's right, nya! It was horrible!"
Dr Kobayashi sighed. "Would you believe me if I said it wasn't because of the medication?"
"Then why-?" Takumi paused.
"Because the oxygen isn't enough to stimulate your whole brain, it's prioritising. Motor function, speech and long term memory seem to have priority. The part of your brain controlling emotion is getting less oxygen so your emotions have been spiking at an increasing rate. It seems your short term memory and emotion have 'taken a beating' and whenever this influx of emotion builds up, your memory 'turns off'' and you completely forget what happened."
"So I really did yell at Rika-chan?" Eiji breathed.
"Yes, you did."
"I can't remember because I got so emotional?"
"That is correct. Your brain is shutting down," Dr Kobayashi explained. "I've also noticed your words aren't as clear as it was about two weeks ago. Say 'Nama mu…' oh, don't worry. With this new data, we can tell you that your remaining life-span is very short."
"How short?" Shou asked. He couldn't stand not knowing how long his youngest brother was going to live. He had always known everything about his brother.
"Previously, it was less than two months but now, a month at most. At the rate of deterioration, within the next two weeks, I would not be surprised if Eiji could no longer breathe by himself by himself," Dr Kobayashi concluded. "I'm very serious, Eiji. You should immediately quit t-"
"Quit tennis, right? I'm not. Never," Eiji said. His voice lacked as much emotion as usual. The comment his emotions affected his memory had really gotten deep into him.
"Well, that too, but I'm now saying that just school is beyond your capabilities. Soon, you won't be able to write and your handwriting is already atrocious. Quit school, and subsequently tennis. You should spend the rest of your days at home or in hospital."
Eiji frowned. "Are you crazy?" he asked in a monotone voice. "I won't quit tennis so how likely is it I'll quit school, nya?"
"Eiji-"
"Taku-ane, can I take Hige for a walk? I need some fresh air," Eiji asked. Hige, the dog, wagged his tail at the sentence including 'Hige' and 'walk' in it. Takumi nodded. Hige would protect Eiji. Hige always had. Even after Yuki died.
-Five hundred and Thirty Four Paper Cranes-
"Takumi! I think Hige and Yuki want their dinner!"
Takumi smiled as she set out the dog food for her two dogs. Yuki was as white as snow and Hige's mother. Hige was only a pup and had black and white fur. Hige's tail wagged and tongue hung out of his mouth as he waited for his dinner.
"Here you go," Takumi smiled as she opened the door to outside so the dogs wouldn't mess up the floor.
It was sudden, but Yuki whined. Hige sniffed the air and began to run. Yuki barked as Hige managed to crawl under the gate. Takumi dropped the bowls and ran after Hige, Yuki staying by her side diligently. The fourteen year old called for Hige as he ran, barking and looking back to see if they were following. If Takumi would stop, so would Hige and he'd bark so much Yuki would tug on Takumi's shorts desperately.
Hige stopped at something on the ground. He licked at it and curled up beside it when he got no response. Takumi caught up and saw her youngest brother on the floor, as pale as a ghost. Yuki whined again, licking Eiji's face in attempt to wake him up. Yuki curled up on the other side to Hige and sat her hand on his chest.
"Takumi!" Shou called as he ran down to his sister younger by three years and his brother, younger by twelve.
Takumi knelt down and felt her five year old brother's face. It was cold. She turned instantly. "Niisan! Quick! It's Eiji!"
Shou ran as fast as he could and stopped where Eiji lay. "What happened?" Takumi was almost in hysterics. She was crying as she ran a hand down her youngest brother's face.
Slowly, Eiji's eyes opened. He felt the heaviness of Yuki's head on his chest and Hige on his arm. He saw his sister's tears. "Taku-ane, what happened?" Eiji was attacked by the slobbery kisses of both the dogs. Eiji giggled a little. "Stop it! Yuki! Hige!" Eiji began to cough, from mild to violent rather quickly.
After a few moments, it subsided and Eiji tried to sit up. He felt dizzy, nauseous and cold, all at the same time. He put one hand to his forehead and it was freezing.
Shou frowned. "Are you okay?" he asked as he knelt down to his brother's height. It was quite a distance, considering Shou was seventeen.
Eiji grabbed his brother's hand. "A bit dizzy… why are you out this early?"
-Five hundred and Eighty Seven Paper Cranes-
Shou held his brother in his arms as he walked into the hospital. Eiji had lay down and stayed rather still for at least an hour but he hadn't gotten any better.
"Kikumaru-kun!" a voice greeted happily.
"Ah, Yamaru-kun, why are you here?" Shou asked.
Eiji closed his eyes, feeling rather tired. It wasn't normal for him to be so exhausted. His family were overfilled with health and happiness. Between them, they were perfect in health; they rarely even got colds or the flu.
"Shou-nii…" Eiji coughed as he gripped onto Shou's shirt in pain. His chest was aching and heart pounding at an unbelievable rate.
"Hello, what's going on," a woman asked, presumably a nurse by her attire. "Quickly, quickly! This way!" The woman spent mere seconds at the desk and a doctor and a few other nurses were ready for Eiji.
-Five Hundred and Ninety Six Paper Cranes-
"He has anaemia, huh?" Dr Kobayashi noted as he looked at his clipboard. "I'm afraid this is more serious than simple anaemia." He closed the door and stood up straight.
Shou sat up as his parents held Eiji's hands. "What do you mean?"
Dr Kobayashi smiled. "Hello, Kikumaru-san! My name is Dr Kobayashi. I'm going to take care of you," he said in a voice that screamed how unaccustomed to children he was. Either that or he was a really dorky, pathetic father. Ironically, he was the second and first at the same time.
"I'm not a baby," Eiji grumbled, pulling at the oxygen mask they had put on him.
Dr Kobayashi nodded. "Of course you're not. Is this your family?"
Eiji didn't like him already. He pointed to the members of his family as he introduced them. "That's Papa and Mama, my biggest brother Shou-nii and by biggest sister Takumi-ane, my other big sister Yasuhiko-ane and my big brother Setsu-nii. That's Grandma and Grandpa."
Dr Kobayashi tried to memorise their names but it was hard. He just learned of nine people in a few minutes. "Well, Eiji-kun – can I call you that? – I'm going to speak to your parents first, okay? My wife will take care of you if you need help."
The adults dispersed and Setsu folded his arms. "I wonder what she sees in him. He's a f-"
Shou hit his brother in the arm. "You're ten," he pointed out. "Don't judge adults."
The door opened and Dr Kobayashi came back inside. "Eiji-kun, are you feeling alright?" he asked. Eiji nodded. "Eiji-kun, we need to do some more tests. We want to find out what is really making you sick."
Shou shivered. "From what and how bad is it?"
Dr Kobayashi frowned. "Well, Kikumaru-kun, all of the blood tests and the MRI we did earlier point to your younger brother dying. It could be anything between a few days and twenty years, but your brother – Eiji-kun – is going to die."
-Six Hundred and Thirty Five Paper Cranes-
Eiji gently held a card in his hands. He wasn't sure what he would say, but hopefully they could strike up a conversation. Dr Kobayashi and his co-worker, Mei Ichirou, had both said they would like to take Eiji into the hospital for at least a week. Just so they could monitor his progress to see if he really was getting better or worse – hopefully, they'd cure him too.
He had slipped one of his paper cranes inside the card earlier. He made them often, whenever he was at home or found spare paper. In hospital, he could always find some sort of paper somewhere. Either that or he'd walk around the hospital and the doctors/nurses would get into a panic because Eiji had gone missing. Dr and Nurse Kobayashi always told them to calm down – Eiji was still able to move freely, after all – and wait for Eiji to return to his room.
He gently knocked on the door and a soft reply returned. He pushed it open with something resembling a small smile on his face. Although Eiji was in hospital, he had compromised – he got to wear casual clothes so he didn't feel like he was in hospital. Eiji had always hated hospitals. All he ever got was bad news. But he still had to wear the wrist band saying his identity though; just in case something happened.
"Ah, Kikumaru-kun," Rikkai Dai's Yukimura Seiichi smiled. "What brings you here?"
Eiji smiled. "Call me Eiji, please," he insisted. "I heard you were in hospital and I was roaming around, so I decided to visit. Here." Eiji handed him the card and he was rewarded with a kind smile.
"Thank you, Eiji-kun," Yukimura replied. "I never pictured you to be the kind of person to hang around hospitals."
Eiji laughed a little. "No, no, I hate hospitals. I'm kind of forced to be here, nya. It's that or I'm suspended from school," he said with a hint of a joke in his voice. Yukimura didn't get it. Eiji sat down in a chair placed in the same position his brother usually sat in when he visited Eiji. "So what have you got again?"
"It's like Guillian-Barre Syndrome, but it's a little different," Yukimura explained. "I have to decide between dying or having surgery and still possibly dying."
Eiji's expression got a little lower. "You're better off than others," he said. "Some don't have any cure at all."
Yukimura chuckled a little. "That's true," he said. "If I get the surgery, then they say there's a minimal, but possible chance I'll be able to play in Nationals."
Eiji smiled, but his eyes were not anywhere near as bright. "That's great, nya!" Eiji exclaimed. "That means you can help Rikkai try and beat Seigaku."
Yukimura smiled. "What do you mean 'try'?"
"Well, Seigaku are going to win, of course," Eiji said with a slight wink.
Yukimura laughed. "I see. We won't be going easy on you, then," he replied. He held his head and wiped his blue hair out of his eyes. "Why are you being forced here, Eiji-kun? Hospitals are dreadful places."
Eiji chuckled. "I know what you mean," he said with a smile. "I've never liked them. My family have always been really healthy but whenever someone comes to one, they always get told bad news. Usually that they are going to die."
Yukimura nodded. "Doctors are pessimists at heart, aren't they?" he said. "Are you visiting a grandparent or something?"
Eiji shook his head. "No, I'm here for me," he admitted. "Not that I like admitting that."
Yukimura was puzzled. If he put two and two together, that meant Eiji was really sick and he was admitted into hospital. Something he didn't really notice about Eiji. But when he looked him over a little more critically, he could see how thin Eiji was, the pale, lifeless colour of his skin and the slight bags under Eiji's eyes. The only thing that kept Eiji looking healthy was his bright red hair and his eyes.
"Here for… you?" Yukimura asked. "What are you sick with?"
Eiji shrugged. "Damn doctors can't tell me." There was a hint of anger in his voice. "But they can tell me that I shouldn't be playing tennis."
"Oh, that speech. I get it regularly. You learn to ignore it," Yukimura chuckled. "What's wrong with you?"
Eiji didn't usually feel comfortable telling people about how sick he was. But since Yukimura had shared with him, he would share back. It was an extra person to share the burden. Besides, he could then visit Yukimura and not be asked every day. "My body… is shutting down. It started in my lungs when I was little. I was five when I was first told I was going to die."
Yukimura listened intently. It wasn't often he heard stories of people his own age going through harder times than he was. He had the choice to die or live. Eiji had no choice in the matter – he was just going to die. To have known he was going to die from five years old, it would have been painful. Even if the family had just been given some condolences by knowing what disease he did have, it would have lightened the load.
"If I'm not there when you play Seigaku," Eiji started. "Please make sure they play their best. I don't want the thought of my death or me dying holding them back."
Yukimura found it difficult to understand. Telling his team had meant they could share the burden together. But then again, he had heard rumours Seigaku was rather divided at the moment – Eiji had explained it was because he was sick and most people didn't believe him because he couldn't say what he really had – and so even if he told them all what he had, he would still be accused and ridiculed.
"Eiji-kun, do you mind if you visit me tomorrow too?" Yukimura asked. "They won't let me out of the room and it's lonely when none of the others can visit me."
Eiji smiled. "Sure, nya."
-Six Hundred and Sixty Three Paper Cranes-
(A.N: This has been ready for a few days, but I was too lazy to update. Actually, the whole rest of the fic is ready but I'm not going to post it all at once. =P There's about two more chapters left, depending on how I break it up. I hope you'll continue to review and stay with me to the end!
Asami-chann)